Red and Gold settle for draw in exhibition match

By PARTICIA KEAMO
AN exhibition match between Team Red and Team Gold, both whose players make up the national train-on squad, ended in a 1-1 draw in Port Moresby on Saturday.
After a scoreless first half at Papua New Guinea Football Stadium, Gold’s super substitute Eaka Philemon netted a goal off an assist by Lae City Dwellers striker Raymond Gunemba in the 69th minute.
Eight minutes from fulltime, Red’s Obert Bika equalised, ending the match in a draw.
The match featured some of the country’s top footballers battling for a spot in the final squad who will prepare for the Fifa World Cup qualifiers in Qatar.
With 22 players in each team, the squad had underwent a week-long camp under coaches Bob Morris (Red) and Erickson Komeng (Gold) with assistance from Nathan Vincent, Samson Steven and Godfrey Baniau.
Morris said both sides had a mixture of players from the Northern and Southern Conferences.
“We had a few chances but did not convert them into goals,” he said.
“But otherwise both sides did well.
“It was proposed that we’d have another camp in September but that had yet to be confirmed.
“Players are still fit, playing in the National Soccer League, so we hope that they maintain that standard.
“After this camp, we’ll come up with a cut on how many players will return for the final squad.”
Meanwhile, Komeng told The National that they only had a week to prepare the team and after swapping players on Wednesday, they didn’t have time to work on their combinations.
“The match was a bit rusty but these were all quality players who did well,” he said.
Selections for the final 25-man squad are underway with an announcement to be made soon.